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| workshop of artisan natural infusions of the Dolomites |
A couple of years ago we were on our
ski vacation in the Italian Dolomites.
As usual we stumbled into a great wine and spirits shop near Ortisei in
Val Gardena. So, I forget the name of
the wine shop, but I remembered that it was there where we bought this
fantastic digestive spirit called Al Cirmolo made by L’Ones.
Being that I have never been to a
distillery, I thought since we were on our way up to Merano we could go check
this place out.
I called about a month in advance and
spoke with the owner, who was very nice, about visiting his distillery. He said to just call back a week before you
come and we’ll would make an appointment. He said he is always there and he doesn’t have
any employee’s.
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| Massimo |
Guided by our special Garmin GPS
(which always seems to take the scenic route) took us through a backroad/shortcut
(but not really) which was a really beautiful drive up to Panchià.
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| Panchià |
I would actually like to go back to that area
and stay someday. Apart from the
backroad, we found the place with no problems at all.
We were greeting warmly by Massimo,
the creator/owner, who took us through his distillery, which is a one-man
operation. We got to see the vats full
of recently picked wild local herbs, buds and cones.
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| Rosa Canina |
I told Massimo that I had a cold coming on
and asked if he had any suggestions on a cure.
So he had me climb up on this little vat ladder and take a deep in-hail
of the newly picked Al Pino Mugo.
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| Pino Mugo |
It
smelled amazing, and instantly started to clear my sinuses, so I went up for
second whiff. Kind of like smelling Vic’s
vapor rub, minus the chemicals & greasy crap. I have to say that this helped
a lot. I also followed his advice and
drank shots of the Al Pino Mugo twice a day for 2 days and it worked great.
I was not going to let a stupid cold ruin my
action packed wine experience extended weekend!
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| Prugnole Selvatiche |
We tasted through all 9 of his
wonderful Bevande Spiritosi as he likes to call them. This would translate to Spirits Drinks or
libations maybe.
L’Ones by the way is a nickname of
the old owner of the farmhouse/distillery.
The ever so chic logo is the name simply handwritten by Massimo.
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| Packaging Room |
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| label stand-manually done |
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| Tasting Room |
Here’s my tasting notes from L’Ones
1. Al Mirtillo ★★★
1. Al Mirtillo ★★★
Wild blueberries which grow
spontaneously in the woods
Not
sweet & not aromatic
2. Alla Rosa Canina ★ ½
Gives you 50
times more vitamin C than eating a citrus fruit
Reminded me a
little of Sherry
3. Alla Prugnole Selvatiche ★★
A very bitter
fruit which has a flavor like cherries but sweeter and smooth
4. Al Lupino Tostato di Anterivo ★★★
A blue
lupine. During the war they toasted it
and used it instead of coffee.
On the nose it
was like rum.
This was one
that I wasn’t going to taste either, but…
5. Al Cumino Montano ★★
It has many
digestive qualities, but isn’t an Amaro (Bitter)
Has a
fantastic exotic aroma. Graziano liked
it so much.
This was one
that I wasn’t going to taste either, but I was glad I did!
6. Al Cirmolo ★
Very medicinal
smelling and balsamic
7. Al Pino Mugo ★★★
Resin of
miniature Mountain Pine Cones for coughs and colds
8. Grappa Schönsberg ★★
80% Pinot Noir
40% Sauvignon 15% Traminer
Massimo made
the grappa how he likes it, very smooth
9. Alla Genziana
is a root which
is very digestive
the first sip is
very arrogant (as Massimo said)
very healing
for the stomach and also good for headaches
This is a traditional
recipe of Trentino
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| dried herbs display |
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| above L'Ones |
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| near L'Ones |
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